CROSSROADS

Part-5

A month had passed be and it was a smooth and knowledgeable journey here in NSD. The situations in the home were a little better than before.

As it was the last day we had a play and the family members were invited. The expected numbers of spectators turning up were around 300. I was given the lead role so I was nervous. Though I had learnt how to act and did a few stage shows as well while learning but in those days the spectators were the group member and the instructor. It was the 1^st time our group was supposed to perform in front of such a large spectator and ours was the last performance. I was standing behind the curtains as the parents had started to take their seats and I was searching for mine. I had kept the passes for the show and I was hoping that they would come.

When the whole auditorium was full and I was about to give up, I spotted ma coming along with Sheila aunty. I knew dad wouldn’t come and I was right anyways I was happy that my mother came for my show. Sheila aunty was spell bound looking at the whole auditorium. She was saying something to my mom but my mom was not at all interested. There were some participants near the stage she was staring towards them trying to find me.

The chief guests had arrived and after the candle lighting session the plays had begun there were three plays to be shown and mine was the third and last one. One by one the names of the participants were called out who were in the 1^st group. My mom was hoping to hear my name and I was standing behind the curtains looking at her whereas Sheila aunty was totally disinterested.

After about 20 minutes the 1^st play was over and the second group had started walking on the stage. Their names were being called out one by one and my mom was hoping that this was my performance and I was still standing behind the curtains looking at her.

Few minutes had passed by and the organizers informed that it was the group of my turn to perform. I could see some of my group members were stretching and some were meditating I was still in my old position i.e. Looking at my mom. She was impatient as to when the name of my group was going to be announced.

Finally the time had come and it was my time to perform. The smile was back on my mother’s face and even Sheila aunty looked like she was waiting for me to come out and if I did any mistake she would not waste a second to laugh at me. My name was announced and my time had come.

The lights of the auditorium were out because my act was mime so there was a beam of white light and it would fell upon those how would be acting that time.

The spectators turned silent. Their full attention was upon us. After all they never saw such a thing and they didn’t even blink an eye as they didn’t want to miss a particular scene.

Scene 1:

There are 3 people on the stage- A guy and his parents.

Guy goes to his parent’s room and he asks for something. Dad shouts angrily on him and asks him to leave.

The Guy goes to his room and sleeps.

While sleeping he sees a dream

Scene 2:

He sees his life from the childhood days when he was beaten, when he heard no for his demands and how the sadness in him increased.

Scene 3:

As the dream progresses he sees his school life, when the teacher used to slap him and punish him in front of the class, how the kids made fun of him. He saw how the sadness increased and the love he had once started to turn in anger

Scene 4:

He then sees the phase of his life where he loved a girl how badly he wanted to be with her. But she too rejected him and how much he broke from inside.

The dream continued and he didn’t realised he was crying he wakes up suddenly, wipes his eyes sits on the bed and looks up towards the sky and think about something.

He gets an idea and decides to go ahead with it

Scene 5:

(Suddenly the white light disappears and the whole auditorium is dark)

(When the white light comes back)

There are some dry leaves spread on the stage and a rope hanging from above which is moving to and fro like a pendulum and no one can be seen on the stage.

--------THE END-------

         

The light comes back and he could see that eyes of the audience from the 1^st row were wet. People were giving his team a standing ovation. His eyes were searching for his mother’s eye and when he saw her she was also crying.